Siege of Inverness (1273)

The Siege of Inverness was a key battle of the Norwegian invasion of Scotland, occurring in 1273-1274. The Norwegian king Haakon IV of Norway and an army of 628 troops laid siege to the key Scottish city and took it by storm, killing a number of Scottish nobles and troops.

History
In 1268, King Haakon Haakonsson of Norway arrived in the Kingdom of the Isles to take command of the Norwegian campaigns in the British Isles. In 1271, the Scottish attacked the advance guard of his invasion force three times, with Alexander Comyn losing the first two but winning the last one with reinforcements. His attacks only drained the troops of Scotland, while the Norwegian army was extricated intact.

King Haakon proceeded to lead an army against Inverness, leaving his capital of Wick to face an army of 638 Scots under William of Angus, Alexander Comyn, and Alexander Stewart. The Scots attempted a sortie in 1273 but this resulted in a draw; the Scots remained besieged. Although they had the upper hand in the second sortie of 1274, the Norwegians won by the slightest chance and wiped out the Scots. Scotland, bankrupt, could not pay the ransom for their generals and all of them were killed. With Inverness captured, Scotland swore vengeance.